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Do you know how your thyroid works? The thyroid hormone is vitally important: every cell in the body - be that a gut cell, brain cell, immune cell or muscle cell - has receptors for it, and thus it quite literally instructs each of those cells to do what they are designed to do and drives the speed at which all of these cells work.

Here I'm explaining the differences between Hypothyroidism and Hyperthyroidism symptoms and why some thyroid tests come back as normal - even if there are indicators that the Thyroid is not functioning normally. Most people with hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis need to take thyroid hormone medication, as having low or depressed thyroid hormone levels can lead to moderate to severe symptoms. However, we must also get to work on addressing the root causes.

We learn in biology at school that the role of the gastrointestinal tract is associated with the digestion and absorption of nutrients, as well as, the function of elimination of waste products. But, another key function of the intestine is to police the transport of environmental antigens across the gut wall or what is correctly termed – the mucosal barrier.

ntestinal permeability (also referred to as “leaky gut”) then means that the normally tightly knitted cells of the intestines are weakened and don’t hold substance as they should.

Latest research suggests that changing our thoughts and practices around meals and mealtimes are just as important as obsessing over what it is we actually put in our mouths. The goal of mindful eating then, is to base our meals on physical cues, such as our bodies’ hunger signals, not emotional ones — like eating for comfort.
Finding ways to slow down and eat intentionally are all a part of developing a truly healthy food culture and triggering metabolism.
Mindful eating does not have to be an exercise in super-human concentration, but rather a simple commitment to appreciating, respecting and, above all, enjoying the food you eat every day.

Here are my simple tips to practise mindful eating every day.

Sleep is optimal to our health. During sleep, the body is in an anabolic state - basically when in energy conservation, tissue repair and growth take over. The body temperature falls, growth hormone is secreted and immune cell production is increased - ahh – why we get that cold or flu when we’ve been burning the candle too much! While there are numerous and varied reasons for sleep disturbances, a common denominator is physical, emotional or mental stress to the nervous system.

By following some of my tips for sleep hygiene & lifestyle changes as well as certain herbs and nutraceuticals - I hope it helps you to get some extra healing zzzzzzs in!

You've probably heard about the microbiome in your gut. But did you know that a similarly complex and important ecosystem of bacteria, fungi and viruses exists in the female reproductive tract? It's known as the vaginal microbiome, and it plays a key role in keeping women healthy.

Have you ever heard the term toxic burden? In Functional Medicine, we’ve been discussing and digging into the data for some time, and like all these things it is now being recognised and written about in published peer-reviewed journals and mainstream media.Toxic burden refers to the total number of toxic chemicals in your body at a given time, or the amount of a single chemical.

Our toxic burden or load has become a critical health and environmental problem. It affects us all and has been linked cause health problems.

I’m delving deeper into the science 🤓 of Broccoli, Hormones & The Gut – do you know what the connection is?

My Fabulous Five health tips for 2019 that will help tip the balance back into some equilibrium, accompanied with the reasoning why, without beating you with a guilty stick or asking you to live off green juices for a month!